Kirispupis Top 10 for 2022

[kirispupis]

Since it looks like I won't be participating in any more auctions this year, I thought I'd create my top 10. This has been a very successful year. I added ~190 coins in 2022 in my second year of collecting, up from ~160 coins in my first year. I've picked up some key acquisitions for my Philip II, Alexander III, and the Era of the Diadochi collection and expanded it to the cities during that period.

This year, most of my acquisitions were bronze, unlike my first year when I picked up many tets. Below are my ten showiest coins IMHO. I'll post a separate top ten of only bronzes later.

Listed in the order of acquisition.

#1 Samaria Obol. I love the lion on this tiny coin that may have been in circulation during the time of Alexander the Great.

SAMARIA, Samarian-signed Series
Circa 375-333 BCE
AR Obol 8.5mm, 0.63 g, 7h
Forepart of lion crouching right, head facing / Bearded head of male left; ŠMRY[N] (in Aramaic) to right.
Meshorer & Qedar 83; Sofaer 59
Ex CNG

 

#2 I picked up this pharaonic owl as almost an after-thought, realizing during the auction that the likelihood is either it was minted by Nektanebo II, or he minted very similar coins. It looks absolutely stunning in hand.

EGYPT, Pharaonic Kingdom. Uncertain pharaoh(s)
Late 5th–mid 4th centuries BCE
AR Tetradrachm 24mm, 17.03 g, 8h
Imitating Athens. Helmeted head of Athena right, with frontal eye / Owl standing right, head facing; olive sprig and crescent to left; all within incuse square. Van Alfen, Mechanisms, Group III.A.1, Fig. 2 = Buttrey Type M. Ex
Ex NGC encapsulation 5872733-112, graded XF, Strike: 5/5, Surface: 3/5.
Ex Ponterio 1985
Ex Robert W. Bartlett Bequest Sold for the Benefit of the American Numismatic Society
Ex CNG

 

#3 I'd been after a Diodotos I tet, since he founded the Baktrian kingdom, for some time. I therefore could not have been more thrilled to pick this one up for a decent price.

Greco-Baktrian Kingdom, Diodotos I Soter
AR Tetradrachm circa 255-235 BCE
15.32g, 29mm, 6h
In the name of Antiochos II of the Seleukid Empire. Mint A (near Aï Khanoum), Diademed head to right / Zeus Bremetes advancing to left, brandishing aegis and thunderbolt; ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ to right, ΑΝΤΙΟΧΟΥ to left, monogram above eagle at inner left.
Kritt A6; Holt Series A, Group 6; Bopearachchi 2E; Mitchiner 64d; SNG ANS 77-8; SC 631.1a.
Ex Neil Collection
Ex Roma

 

#4 I bought this coin at a baseball game, where I saw a coin from Olympia from the year when Alexander III became king. I didn't think I had a chance at it, but my lowball bid was accepted and this is now one of my favorite coins to show off.

ELIS, Olympia. 111th Olympiad
336 BCE
AR Stater 22mm, 11.63 g, 6h
Hera mint. Head of Hera right, wearing ornamented stephanos inscribed [FAΛEI]Ω[N] / Eagle standing left, head right, wings spread, on rock; all within wreath.
Seltman, Temple 341–5 var. (dies FG/–); BCD Olympia 159 (same obv. die); HGC 5, 394.
Ex CNG

 

#5 My attempts to obtain an Ariarathes I example had become almost comical, since I failed three times due to mistakes either on my end or in the auction. Finally, I picked up this example and couldn't be happier.

Paphlagonia, Sinope. Ariarathes I of Cappadocia
Circa 325 BCE
AR Drachm 5.53 gm, 17mm
Persic standard
Obv.: 'm in Aramaic, head of the nymph Sinope to left, her hair bound in a sakkos, wearing triple-pendant earring and pearl necklace; to left, aphlaston.
Rev.: 'ariyrth' in Aramaic, sea-eagle with spread wings standing on a dolphin to left.
HGC 7, 434; SNG BM Black Sea 1459; SNG Stancomb 761
Ex Tom Vossen

 

#6 In my first year, I picked up a Patraos stater. His nephew Audoleon is a bit trickier, but I was thrilled to grab this example.

Kings of Paeonia, Audoleon AR Drachm
Astibos or Damastion mint(?), circa 315-286 BCE
2.97g, 14mm, 1h.
Head of Athena facing slightly to left, wearing triple crested helmet
Horse trotting to right; AYΔΩΛEΩN-TOΣ around, monogram below.
Peykov E4400; AMNG III/2, 7 var. (position of monogram); SNG ANS 1057 corr. (monogram not star on rev.); HGC 3.1, 154
Ex Roma Numismatics December 2017
Ex Italo Vecchi Collection
Ex Roma Numismatics September 2022

 

#7 I honestly never figured I had a chance at an Okhos coin, so he wasn't even on my list (even though I knew of his coinage). However, when one showed up, I figured "why not?" and was stunned to see my bid win. This completes an Egyptian trifecta for me between the owl above and the Sabakes tet I acquired last year, and is easily the rarest of the three.

EGYPT, Achaemenid Province. Artaxerxes III Okhos. As Pharaoh of Egypt
343/2-338/7 BCE
AR Tetradrachm (26mm, 15.07 g, 9h)
Imitating Athens. Head of Athena right, with frontal eye, wearing earring and crested Attic helmet decorated with three olive leaves over visor and a spiral palmette on the bowl
Owl standing right, head facing; olive spray and crescent to left, “Artaxerxes Pharaoh” in two-line Demotic A script to right.
two test cuts on either side, obv. punch.
Van Alfen Type I, 1–5 = Price, More 147–9; O. Mørkholm, “A Coin of Artaxerxes III” in NC 1974, pl. I, 7–8; cf. Meadows, Administration 329; Mildenberg, Münzwesen 124.
Ex CNG

 

#8 I'd had Eumenes I on my list for a while, but the coins always went too high. Luckily, acquiring one just required some patience. This is easily my top high-relief coin.

KINGS of PERGAMON. Eumenes I
Struck circa 255/0-241 BCE
AR Tetradrachm 29mm, 16.89 g, 1h
In the name of Philetairos. Pergamon mint
Laureate head of Philetairos right
Athena enthroned left, elbow resting on shield to right, crowning dynastic name; transverse spear in background, grape bunch to outer left, A to inner left, bow to right.
Westermark Group V (unlisted dies); SNG BN 1618
Ex CNG 2015
Ex Lampasas Collection
Ex CNG 2022

 

#9 I'd similarly missed several Hezekiah attempts, he being pretty much the only person named on coins in Judea around the time of Alexander the Great. I dawdled too long on a VCoins listing, was outbid at one auction, and didn't bid in another one where it went within my budget. Luckily, the fourth time was the charm.

JUDAEA, Macedonian Period. Hezekiah
Circa 332-302/1 BCE
AR Half Gerah – Ma’ah 8mm, 0.27 g
 Facing head of male
Owl standing right, head facing; HPḤH (in Phoenician) to left, YḤZQYH (in Phoenician) to right
MCP YHD 24, dies O9/R11; Meshorer 22; Hendin 6069; HGC 10, 450; Bromberg 319; Shoshana II 20048; cf. Sofaer 20; Spaer 22
Ex Bes Collection
Ex CNG

 

#10 With this pick-up of Tiribazos, my collection of The 10,000 is almost complete.

Cilicia, Soloi Tiribazos, satrap.
AR Stater 9.92g, 21mm, 6h
Circa 385-380 BCE
Bearded head of Herakles to right, wearing lion skin around neck
Bearded head of satrap to right, wearing bashlyk; ΣΟΛEΩ[N] around
SNG BnF 159; Traité II, 566; SNG Levante -
Ex Roma

 

Honorable mention: a possibly unique drachm from Blargmablark. Actually, no one really knows where it's from. It may be from Arabia. It was listed as Idumea, but that seems unlikely. The best I can comfortably say is it comes from somewhere in the Levant, Judea, Philistia, Arabia, or Mesopotamia from the 5th-1st centuries BCE, which I'm abbreviating as Blargmablark.

Arabia. Athens imitation.
5th-3rd centuries BCE
15mm 4.0g
Helmeted head of Athena left / Owl standing left, head facing; olive spray to right.
Unknown attribution. Seems to be from Arabia. May be unique.
Ex Savoca

[Cordoba]

stunning photograpy, as always! my fav is the diodotos i tetradrachm, but the eumenes is a close second.

[AncientJoe]

190 coins in a year? Your mail carrier worked overtime! A great group of additions: your Pharonic owl is excellent and I always love anything Elis. Congratulations!

[happy_collector]

Nice additions, @kirispupis. I like your pharaonic owl and Eumenes I. 

Great photography also. I look forward to your top 10 bronze list.  🙂

Edited December 6, 2022 by happy_collector

[ambr0zie]

All GREAT coins, but I liked 1, 8 and 9 the most. Congratulations.

[robinjojo]

Nice acquisitions for 2022! 

I have a bias for #7, but #10 and the honorable mention are also outstanding examples (left facing owls are extremely rare!).  That's a very nice pharaonic owl (#2) as well. 

Edited December 8, 2022 by robinjojo

[Qcumbor]

Completely out of my collecting fields, thus very interesting to look at and learn something

Great selection

Q

[CPK]

Nice coins! I think my favorite is the Elis stater - it's got a very appealing combination of wear and patina - plus lots of historical significance.

[singig]

My prefered coin is the Eumenes tetradrahm. Congratulations !

[Severus Alexander]

What a year!! 🤩  I voted for my favourite three: the 336 BCE Olympia and the Okhos for their history (and the difficulty in obtaining them), and the Samaria obol for looks. Yeah, I know the Eumenes is great, as reflected in the voting, but there's just something about that lion, as you say. Plus it's the more unusual coin.

In replying to these I always like to add one of my own additions that's somehow related, so I'll pick a lion.  I finally added a Kroesid siglos to the collection:

As well as the corresponding fourrée (although the fourrée is based on the later Persian productions):

I think they make a neat pair... though their respective lions can't touch the one on your cool obol!

[Limes]

No idea how you managed to get a top 10 from 190 coins, but your selection contains lovely and interesting coins! I voted for the olympia and Ariarathes I, with the first being my personal favorite. 

And Blargmablark, well, its like the sound my cat makes when some hair is stuck in its little throat... 😉 

[kirispupis]

9 hours ago, Severus Alexander said:

In replying to these I always like to add one of my own additions that's somehow related, so I'll pick a lion.  I finally added a Kroesid siglos to the collection:

Very nice Kroesid! The coolest thing about these coins IMHO is you have an actual coin minted by (or around the time of) a 'mythological' persona. His coins don't fit into my collection (one convenient way going off lists has saved me money), but otherwise I would have tried for one.

[Al Kowsky]

On 12/5/2022 at 8:04 PM, kirispupis said:

Since it looks like I won't be participating in any more auctions this year, I thought I'd create my top 10. This has been a very successful year. I added ~190 coins in 2022 in my second year of collecting, up from ~160 coins in my first year. I've picked up some key acquisitions for my Philip II, Alexander III, and the Era of the Diadochi collection and expanded it to the cities during that period.

This year, most of my acquisitions were bronze, unlike my first year when I picked up many tets. Below are my ten showiest coins IMHO. I'll post a separate top ten of only bronzes later.

Listed in the order of acquisition.

#1 Samaria Obol. I love the lion on this tiny coin that may have been in circulation during the time of Alexander the Great.

SAMARIA, Samarian-signed Series
Circa 375-333 BCE
AR Obol 8.5mm, 0.63 g, 7h
Forepart of lion crouching right, head facing / Bearded head of male left; ŠMRY[N] (in Aramaic) to right.
Meshorer & Qedar 83; Sofaer 59
Ex CNG

 

#2 I picked up this pharaonic owl as almost an after-thought, realizing during the auction that the likelihood is either it was minted by Nektanebo II, or he minted very similar coins. It looks absolutely stunning in hand.

EGYPT, Pharaonic Kingdom. Uncertain pharaoh(s)
Late 5th–mid 4th centuries BCE
AR Tetradrachm 24mm, 17.03 g, 8h
Imitating Athens. Helmeted head of Athena right, with frontal eye / Owl standing right, head facing; olive sprig and crescent to left; all within incuse square. Van Alfen, Mechanisms, Group III.A.1, Fig. 2 = Buttrey Type M. Ex
Ex NGC encapsulation 5872733-112, graded XF, Strike: 5/5, Surface: 3/5.
Ex Ponterio 1985
Ex Robert W. Bartlett Bequest Sold for the Benefit of the American Numismatic Society
Ex CNG

 

#3 I'd been after a Diodotos I tet, since he founded the Baktrian kingdom, for some time. I therefore could not have been more thrilled to pick this one up for a decent price.

Greco-Baktrian Kingdom, Diodotos I Soter
AR Tetradrachm circa 255-235 BCE
15.32g, 29mm, 6h
In the name of Antiochos II of the Seleukid Empire. Mint A (near Aï Khanoum), Diademed head to right / Zeus Bremetes advancing to left, brandishing aegis and thunderbolt; ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ to right, ΑΝΤΙΟΧΟΥ to left, monogram above eagle at inner left.
Kritt A6; Holt Series A, Group 6; Bopearachchi 2E; Mitchiner 64d; SNG ANS 77-8; SC 631.1a.
Ex Neil Collection
Ex Roma

 

#4 I bought this coin at a baseball game, where I saw a coin from Olympia from the year when Alexander III became king. I didn't think I had a chance at it, but my lowball bid was accepted and this is now one of my favorite coins to show off.

ELIS, Olympia. 111th Olympiad
336 BCE
AR Stater 22mm, 11.63 g, 6h
Hera mint. Head of Hera right, wearing ornamented stephanos inscribed [FAΛEI]Ω[N] / Eagle standing left, head right, wings spread, on rock; all within wreath.
Seltman, Temple 341–5 var. (dies FG/–); BCD Olympia 159 (same obv. die); HGC 5, 394.
Ex CNG

 

#5 My attempts to obtain an Ariarathes I example had become almost comical, since I failed three times due to mistakes either on my end or in the auction. Finally, I picked up this example and couldn't be happier.

Paphlagonia, Sinope. Ariarathes I of Cappadocia
Circa 325 BCE
AR Drachm 5.53 gm, 17mm
Persic standard
Obv.: 'm in Aramaic, head of the nymph Sinope to left, her hair bound in a sakkos, wearing triple-pendant earring and pearl necklace; to left, aphlaston.
Rev.: 'ariyrth' in Aramaic, sea-eagle with spread wings standing on a dolphin to left.
HGC 7, 434; SNG BM Black Sea 1459; SNG Stancomb 761
Ex Tom Vossen

 

#6 In my first year, I picked up a Patraos stater. His nephew Audoleon is a bit trickier, but I was thrilled to grab this example.

Kings of Paeonia, Audoleon AR Drachm
Astibos or Damastion mint(?), circa 315-286 BCE
2.97g, 14mm, 1h.
Head of Athena facing slightly to left, wearing triple crested helmet
Horse trotting to right; AYΔΩΛEΩN-TOΣ around, monogram below.
Peykov E4400; AMNG III/2, 7 var. (position of monogram); SNG ANS 1057 corr. (monogram not star on rev.); HGC 3.1, 154
Ex Roma Numismatics December 2017
Ex Italo Vecchi Collection
Ex Roma Numismatics September 2022

 

#7 I honestly never figured I had a chance at an Okhos coin, so he wasn't even on my list (even though I knew of his coinage). However, when one showed up, I figured "why not?" and was stunned to see my bid win. This completes an Egyptian trifecta for me between the owl above and the Sabakes tet I acquired last year, and is easily the rarest of the three.

EGYPT, Achaemenid Province. Artaxerxes III Okhos. As Pharaoh of Egypt
343/2-338/7 BCE
AR Tetradrachm (26mm, 15.07 g, 9h)
Imitating Athens. Head of Athena right, with frontal eye, wearing earring and crested Attic helmet decorated with three olive leaves over visor and a spiral palmette on the bowl
Owl standing right, head facing; olive spray and crescent to left, “Artaxerxes Pharaoh” in two-line Demotic A script to right.
two test cuts on either side, obv. punch.
Van Alfen Type I, 1–5 = Price, More 147–9; O. Mørkholm, “A Coin of Artaxerxes III” in NC 1974, pl. I, 7–8; cf. Meadows, Administration 329; Mildenberg, Münzwesen 124.
Ex CNG

 

#8 I'd had Eumenes I on my list for a while, but the coins always went too high. Luckily, acquiring one just required some patience. This is easily my top high-relief coin.

KINGS of PERGAMON. Eumenes I
Struck circa 255/0-241 BCE
AR Tetradrachm 29mm, 16.89 g, 1h
In the name of Philetairos. Pergamon mint
Laureate head of Philetairos right
Athena enthroned left, elbow resting on shield to right, crowning dynastic name; transverse spear in background, grape bunch to outer left, A to inner left, bow to right.
Westermark Group V (unlisted dies); SNG BN 1618
Ex CNG 2015
Ex Lampasas Collection
Ex CNG 2022

 

#9 I'd similarly missed several Hezekiah attempts, he being pretty much the only person named on coins in Judea around the time of Alexander the Great. I dawdled too long on a VCoins listing, was outbid at one auction, and didn't bid in another one where it went within my budget. Luckily, the fourth time was the charm.

JUDAEA, Macedonian Period. Hezekiah
Circa 332-302/1 BCE
AR Half Gerah – Ma’ah 8mm, 0.27 g
 Facing head of male
Owl standing right, head facing; HPḤH (in Phoenician) to left, YḤZQYH (in Phoenician) to right
MCP YHD 24, dies O9/R11; Meshorer 22; Hendin 6069; HGC 10, 450; Bromberg 319; Shoshana II 20048; cf. Sofaer 20; Spaer 22
Ex Bes Collection
Ex CNG

 

#10 With this pick-up of Tiribazos, my collection of The 10,000 is almost complete.

Cilicia, Soloi Tiribazos, satrap.
AR Stater 9.92g, 21mm, 6h
Circa 385-380 BCE
Bearded head of Herakles to right, wearing lion skin around neck
Bearded head of satrap to right, wearing bashlyk; ΣΟΛEΩ[N] around
SNG BnF 159; Traité II, 566; SNG Levante -
Ex Roma

 

Honorable mention: a possibly unique drachm from Blargmablark. Actually, no one really knows where it's from. It may be from Arabia. It was listed as Idumea, but that seems unlikely. The best I can comfortably say is it comes from somewhere in the Levant, Judea, Philistia, Arabia, or Mesopotamia from the 5th-1st centuries BCE, which I'm abbreviating as Blargmablark.

Arabia. Athens imitation.
5th-3rd centuries BCE
15mm 4.0g
Helmeted head of Athena left / Owl standing left, head facing; olive spray to right.
Unknown attribution. Seems to be from Arabia. May be unique.
Ex Savoca

Kris., You've posted a lovely group of coins 😊. My favorite has to be #2, the Egyptian Owl with the beautiful toning, followed by #8, the tetradrachm of Eumenes I, with the handsome Hellenistic portrait.

[Spaniard]

@kirispupis..

What a super list!...Very difficult to pick just one but went for that Eumenes I tet..Stunning portrait.

Congrats on a cool collecting year.